Los Angeles, 1960s

The Los Angeles Public Library‘s online photo archive keeps giving, this time a series of traffic shots from the 1960s. First up, the above street scene, dated March 23, 1963, showing traffic on the Hollywood Freeway. Based on some poking around on Google Maps (and the first few letters of the exit sign on the far right of the shot), we believe the photo was taken looking northwest from the Vermont Avenue overpass.

Next up, traffic gets snarled in 1965 after a truck spilled a load of gravel on the inbound lanes of the San Bernardino Freeway. We’re not sure exactly where on the SBF the shot was taken; anybody recognize the location?

One more, an April 27, 1962, shot of the intersection of Van Nuys and Victory boulevards, reportedly the busiest intersection in Los Angeles at the time. What do you see in these three shots?

salguodsays:

July 23, 2012 12:45 pm

1960 Squarebird, front and center in shot #1, with a nice Falcon farther back for Art.

No other Squarebirds that I can see, although shot 2 has a Flairbird second row over and 3 cars ahead of the pickup and shot 3 has a nice Bulletbird just behind the T-bucket (and another Falcon on the right).

longrooffansays:

July 23, 2012 2:39 pm

Of course, the Ranchero and the Volvo in the first shot, the American Motors wagon and the Studebaker Lark in number two and finally, an original Fiat 500, a T bucket and a Corvair with mags. All of them way cool. In the last shot, what is the wagon heading perpendicular to this camera angle in front of the 55 longroof in the left turn lane. Looks like a wood clad one but I can’t quite determine the make. Thanks and these old photos are great…

autobug2says:

July 23, 2012 2:45 pm

Cought the `61 Falcon for Art in the first pic, and whatdoyaknow…a `60 Square Bird too! I like the `59 New Yorker 4dr, which you never see anymore. In the second photo. I noticed the venetian blinds in the back window of the `65 Chevy Bicayne; forgot how people used those so much back then–esp. the old duffers. The T-bucket hot-rod in the last pic sure places a timeframe of 1962 on it! Had to be the hottest thing on the road back then.

toronado455says:

July 23, 2012 8:40 pm

Art Finksays:

July 23, 2012 3:29 pm

Congrats Dan, you’ve outdone yourself!! You have a Falcon for me, a Squarebird for Sal and a Stude for Al !!!
Hey AB2, let’s see if we can dig up something for you, too !!!! There’s a Fiat, TBucket, Corvair, Rambler, Bus, Volvo, Pickup. I’m sure if we poke around a little, we’ll even find a Tank……..Picture #2, are all those folks checking out that UFO in the sky????? LOL